Indian pharma can innovate for the world: Sharvil Patel

India's pharma sector, with its advantage in scale, reach, and cost, can play a key role in improving the quality of life for the global good, managing director, Zydus Lifesciences, and vice president, Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance, writes

By Sharvil Patel

Published: Jun 4, 2025 02:48:40 PM IST

Updated: Jun 4, 2025 03:02:47 PM IST

Indian pharma—with its advantage in scale, reach and cost—can play a key role in improving the quality of life for global good. Illustration: Chaitanya Dinesh Surpur

The Indian pharma industry is a vital asset for global health. With its robust manufacturing infrastructure for providing large volumes of affordable medicines and vaccines, India plays a pivotal role in ensuring the accessibility and affordability of life-saving treatments globally.

India, the world’s most populous country, has reaped the benefits of the demographic dividend of a growing young population. With the advances in health care, we have successfully added years to life. However, this has also resulted in a shifting age demographic and rising non-communicable diseases, representing a significant share of the global disease burden.

Indian innovation in lifesciences to create world-class therapeutics is a strategic priority of the nation. Indian pharma—with its advantage in scale, reach and cost—can play a key role in improving the quality of life for global good, supporting drivers of economic growth and accelerating India’s rise into a knowledge-driven nation.

Moving up the value chain

Several policy interventions over the decades have nurtured the journey of Indian pharma—now a $58 billion market. In the formative years, the Patent Act in 1970 paved the way for enabling process patents. Later, in 2005, the government amended the patent laws to comply with the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement, enforcing product patents on pharmaceuticals. Going forward, there are four key pillars fundamental to creating a robust lifesciences innovation ecosystem and for India.

Regulatory Landscape: Global innovation hubs have created fast-track pathways to prioritise and accelerate new drug approvals. India, with its potential to streamline approval timelines even further, must adopt regulatory processes that are efficient, digital and aligned with global standards, supported by strong governance to realise its aspirations.

Increased research spending: Pharma R&D is a capital-intensive process with a high risk of failure. Leading companies are increasingly prioritising investments in research directed towards biosimilars, specialty drugs and drug discovery platforms. The Promotion of Research & Innovation Program Scheme of ₹5,000 crore is a welcome step, and we need to continue to explore more funding avenues through policy incentives and public-private partnerships.

Strengthening industry-academia linkages: The fight against the Covid-19 pandemic highlighted the critical role of industry-academia collaboration in driving innovation. The government’s decision to open select ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research) labs to researchers from public and private medical colleges and private-sector R&D teams is a significant step toward fostering collaborative research and innovation. Incentivising collaborative research, similar to the Bayh-Dole Act in the US, will help the industry leapfrog in areas like biologics, gene therapies and new therapeutic modalities.

Enabling infrastructure: Establishing biotech clusters, incubation and R&D hubs, along with tax incentives, can nurture startups and foster a robust innovation ecosystem. A favourable policy landscape on scientific research, technology transfer and commercialisation, and intellectual property will promote setting up hubs to accelerate the innovation journey and collaboration.

Increasing access to affordable treatment: Introduction of Biosimilars Action Plan in the US has reduced drug prices, and improved patient access to essential medications. Biosimilars have transformed the accessibility and affordability of modern medicines globally. Ensuring access to affordable biosimilars in India while removing policy and legal impediments in providing affordable treatment must be prioritised.

The way forward

In India, a country known for its ingenuity and adaptability, the pharmaceutical industry stands at a crossroads. With its strong manufacturing base, scientific and digital talent, and entrepreneurial spirit, India is well-positioned to move up the value chain. The Covid-19 pandemic is a testament to that: India’s rapid response to the global health care crisis, developing different types of vaccines—vector, protein, mRNA—in various formats, and ensuring a consistent supply of medicines.

With government support, incentivising research and adoption of cutting-edge technology, India can emerge as a global lifesciences innovation leader, advancing the vision of ‘innovate in India, for India and the world’.

(This story appears in the 30 May, 2025 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)